


Welcome to Jurassic Park

by Noctiilio



Category: Love Live! Sunshine!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Jurassic Park Fusion, Background Character Death, Dinosaur trainer! Ruby, Dinosaur trainer! You, Dinosaur!Aqours except Mari; You; and the Kurosawa sisters, Dinosaur!Saint Snow, Everybody lives in the main cast, Ranger! Dia, Science Experiments, Scientist! Mari, dinosaur fights, experiments on live subjects, i wont kill any of the girls because hey its still love live sunshine yknow, moderate amounts of blood and injury, parental figure death, rated T for the fighting and for the darker bits of lore, today in : ruby is so powerful she tames everything
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-13
Updated: 2019-05-20
Packaged: 2020-01-12 22:11:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 13,775
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18455618
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Noctiilio/pseuds/Noctiilio
Summary: Ruby is a new recruit among the dinosaur trainers of the world-famous Jurassic Park. With her coworker You, and her pet dinosaur Yoshiko, can she prevent any disaster from happening in such an unstable park ?





	1. Reporting for duty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Ruby's first day at work. Despite being fresh out of practice with modern animals, the trainer has no real experience with dinosaurs, yet Mari chooses her for a new type of research with certain specimens...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Visual reference for the seven dinosaurs can be seen here ! https://i.imgur.com/Aq3KDb6.png

"huff-, huff, huff-..."

Footsteps and panting, in the pouring rain of Isla Nublar.

"Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear! I am soooo going to get punished!"

A young figure, wearing a flashy red bandana around her neck and an oversized explorer's hat, was running late for her first day at work.  
She was hastily looking at a guide as she was running like a legitimate velociraptor.

"T-T-Tip number f-fourty-eight- no- _fourty nine_! It has once been r-rumored that Tyrannosaurus Rex's vision was only based on movement, however, that rumor has been tragically proved to be false... hmm. Good to know- wait- _tragically_?! Oh no... Oh I hope I won't be the next tragic reveal of a false rumor..."

The soon-to-be trainer took a sharp turn and made it to the main building, offering a salute to the staff, loud and clear for everyone to hear.

"R-Ruby Kurosawa, rookie dinosaur trainer, reporting for duty! Clocking in at 7 : 45 AM!"  
"... You are exactly _two minutes_ and _sixteen seconds_ late, Ruby."

Ruby cringed a little, knowing that voice too well. A woman in ranger attire got up from behind the main hall counter.

"... Dia... I'm sorry I-... I went the wrong way a-and.. I went left on the first turn instead of right..."  
The rookie's older sister did not seem happy about this. At all.  
" It's your _first_ day at work, Ruby! You can't be late when you have prehistoric wildlife on the line!"  
Ruby, already defeated, was accepting her fate : being scolded and humiliated by her sister on her first day at work.  
"It's nothing like your training, those are the most unforgiving creatures when it comes to mistakes ! You know too well who will fix those mistakes of yours, right?!"  
"... It's you, Dia."  
" _E-XACT-LY_! That is why I want you twenty minutes early tomorrow ! You better not take the wrong turn again!"  
Ouch, that did hurt a little. Some rangers watching the scene were chuckling. Ruby knew better than to cry over this.

"In any case, Ruby. Follow me. My... uhm. coworker and I will give you a brief explanation on your work."  
Ah, now it was getting exciting again. Ruby followed her sister upstairs, anticipating so much fun that she could barely contain herself from skipping a few steps like a toddler playing hopscotch.

But that fun anticipation died down instantly as soon as a shriek was heard from inside the room Dia was about to enter. The little trainer clinged onto her sister's back as the ranger opened the door.

There, a blonde scientist with unnecessarily big, nerdy glasses was waiting, giving the two sisters a wave.  
"... Since when do you need prescription glasses, Mari?  
-Oh, Dia, you don't know _anything_ ! Those are purely for the nerdy effect, to put me in the right mood for work.  
-... I- I see.  
-Any way ! You two ! Sit down ! I prepared all the explanation for the new trainer ! Ah, we truly needed more trainers in the park these days!"  
The two sisters sat down. Ruby was still distracted by the bone-chilling shriek she heard earlier, and was looking around to find the source of such a noise. Hopefully, it wasn't a dinosaur, maybe just a bird... Yes... Let's hope it was just a bird.

" _Sooooo_ ~! You're our new recruit in our trainer department, right? Good, good! We needed more like you! You will be very busy!"  
Dia raised an eyebrow.  
"... Remind me, what's the current trainer count in the park?  
-... One. Well, two now, but until yesterday, one."  
Ruby already felt the weight of an entire park's responsibilities falling on top of her frail shoulders.

"Wasn't there around Five last time, tough?  
-Oh, you know~ _casualties_ are part of the job, right?"  
Ah, that was the sentence that made Ruby's body freeze. She was now, truly, a stone.  
"Just ki~dding! They quit because of the hard conditions." Mari giggled, thinking she was the funniest person on the island for pulling a prank on the powerless trainer.  
"I-I-I don't think that makes it any better, though..." muttered the near-petrified rookie.  
Mari regained seriousness as she lifted her fake glasses off her eyes, carefully adjusting them on her forehead. Now she looked more like a tourist in a scientist's disguise, to which both sisters would say this suits her character better.  
"Your job is quite simple, Ruby. You're here to train dinosaurs and prevent them from going feral on us like they did 26 years ago. You've trained with big cats and circus animals, if I remember correctly, right?  
-Y-Yes ! I-I was especially good with seals...  
-Well, here, the seals are killing machines from million years before humanity. But hey! You'll manage, right?"

Before Ruby could express her discomfort, she jumped from her chair as the shriek from earlier came from behind the cleaning supplies cupboard's door.  
"D-D-Dia... W-What was that?!  
-... Mari. Please don't tell me you brought Kanan into your workplace again. We've talked about this many times. Her rightful, safe place is in her enclosure.  
-Oh please, you sound like a broken record ! She just loves being around me ! She helps my research, and there has never been any complaints or lawsuits ! She never did anything to my coworkers ! I had to put her in here after your request for today, Dia, so don't make such a face at me. You know she dislikes confined spaces.  
-... Dia, who's... Kanan?  
-If I tell you, Ruby, you will start uncontrollably sobbin-  
-Oh she's my Velociraptor!" interrupted Mari, with a nonchalant smile, as the chirps from earlier kept going. Ruby's skin went pure white as porcelain to these words. She was not even five meters away from a raptor, and the only barrier protecting her was that inefficient wooden door from the cleaning supplies cupboard.

"While you're curious about the topic, I'm actually trying to prove a theory with her! It's my job as a scientist to further improve knowledge on these animals, after all. And from my experience, it's working pretty well."  
Ruby was too focused on the claws scratching on the door to find the knob to properly listen.  
"I'm trying to prove how dinosaurs are like our dogs and cats, domesticable! Your sister highly disapproves this, but I am still going to put you on my research as part of your job!  
-W-WHAT?!" the two Kurosawas got up in unison, both in utter disbelief... and Ruby's blood froze in place when the cupboard knob opened, a midnight blue snout peeking from the small opening.

"... Mari. Your... uhm. Your treasured abomination opened the door."  
"Ohh~ Kanan !!! You missed me so much you figured how doorknobs work, what a good girl you are!!"  
The raptor chirped, and immediately ran to Mari for a head pat.  
"See? She could have killed all three of us, but she didn't! That's the theory I'm defending!"  
Dia tried to restrain herself from strangling the ridiculous scientist with her bare hands for putting everyone, especially her sister, in danger like this.

"So, I was saying! Ruby, your training duty will help my research. You will be given a teammate today!  
-And of what species, may I ask? You better give Ruby a human teammate or else...  
-Oh actually we have a reject Microraptor, she won't blend into the flock and keeps getting bullied by her own kind. So... we kind of took her away from the rest of the pack. A fourty centimeter long shoulder buddy can't hurt, right, Ruby?"  
So... now it was a common thing to have your own dinosaur, huh... Well if it was only a fourty centimeter creature from snout to tail, it might be no different from a big plush toy.  
Ruby nodded, to which her sister made the facial representation of disgust.  
"Very well, then ! I'll go get the little thing, I'll leave Kanan with you so you can adapt to dinosaur company? Sounds good~?"

Before the Kurosawa sisters could do anything, Mari was already gone, leaving both sisters with a loose Velociraptor in an office. Anything, Anything could happen. The best, or the worst.  
Dia quickly grabbed her tranquilizing rifle, just in case the apex predator would revert to her primal instincts.

  
Kanan slowly approached Ruby, inquisitive. She was hissing and growling. Ruby was petrified, giving panicked glances at her sister, making sure the rifle was locked on the theropod if things went wrong.

The blue dinosaur kept her slow approach. It almost looked like she was in slow motion. She stopped, five centimeters away from Ruby's face. The trainer almost felt all the blood in her veins run back to her heart when the raptor showed her hundreds of teeth, sharper than any manmade razor.  
Ruby, now testing her abilities, snapped her fingers to bring attention to her hand, to alert Kanan that contact was going to be made. All the raptor's attention was now on the trainer's hand, slowly approaching. It almost looked like the dinosaur was smiling, and Ruby didn't know yet if it was cute or downright terrifying.  
The closer Ruby's hand got to Kanan's head, the more horrified Dia's face looked. Her rifle was now visibly shaking in place. Kanan let out a loud, excited shriek, and pressed her nose onto Ruby's hand.

Contact had been made.

The trainer was tearing up from happiness. She was now realizing her true purpose. She was petting a real, live velociraptor. And the dinosaur didn't seem mindless whatsoever, it truly looked like Mari's section had improved the genes and made them... more empathic or something. She was now scratching under Kanan's chin, and oh goodness gracious was the raptor enjoying it.

"I'm back! Ah, I see you've bonded with my companion quickly!"  
Mari came from the back door as if she had teleported out of nowhere, carrying a yet unidentifiable jet black shape in her arms. She quickly gave Dia a death glare, ordering her to put down the rifle.  
"No weapons around my companion, you hear?"  
Mari came forward, Kanan immediately rubbing her head against Mari's elbow, chirping happily.

"Now, Ruby." Mari whispered. "This is your companion."  
The scientist gave a poke on the cowardly cloud of feathers resting in her arms. It would not come out, and kept whimpering as if it was nothing but a wounded puppy.  
"See, she's just like you, she's a little bit of a scaredy-cat... Now, give me your hand."  
Ruby reached out for Mari, who guided her into rubbing the microraptor's back. The little thing started purring like a little kitten and... stretched, revealing its cute, fuzzy head to the two humans.  
"This is Yoshiko. She will be your companion from now on."  
Ruby already loved that dinosaur with all her heart. It looked so frail, so fragile, in desperate need of love and protection. Just like... herself.  
Mari stretched her arm all the way up to Ruby's shoulder to let the microraptor climb onto her new living perch. She let out a satisfied crow-like caw, and curled into a little ball. Kanan gave the smaller dinosaur an affectionate nudge with the tip of her snout.

"Well, it already looks like she adopted you!" exclaimed Mari, applauding, to which her companion chirped.  
Ruby had already grown a little. Before entering the room, she was terrified of dinosaurs and feared what would happen to her in this park. Now, she had touched a velociraptor and adopted her very own microraptor. That was already a lot of progress.  
"Your schedule is simple today! I'll call the other trainer, and she'll show you around! That's all it's going to be about today!  
-Oh that's... it?  
-I know, I know, you wanted to go straight into the wild dinosaur training, right?"

Mari gave the little trainer a gentle smile and a pat on the shoulder Yoshiko wasn't already napping on.  
"Don't worry, you won't get bored in the slightest with your mentor ! Speaking of which... She should be on her way soon-"  
She could barely finish her sentence, someone was banging on the office door surprisingly loudly, to Kanan's excitement.  
The mentor was here.

"Aye ! So I heard there's a new trainer in town, huh?"  
A pretty fit figure with the same uniform as Ruby hastily opened the door. She gave an energetic salute, eagerly looking for her new on-field apprentice.  
"I-I'm right here!  
-Ah, well, if I'm not mistaken, you're Dia's younger sister, right? I'd recognize those eyes anywhere!" chuckled the happy mentor.  
Ruby nodded, gently scratching the head of her microraptor like she had been doing for the past five minutes.

"Well, Welcome aboard, I'm You Watanabe! I'll teach you everything about trainers with passion, you sure won't get bored with me! C'mon, let's go! Adventure awaits!"  
You grabbed Ruby's hand and dragged her down the stairs, bursting with excitement, even more so than her own apprentice herself.

"Welcome to Jurassic park, Ruby!"


	2. Sturdy armor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You Watanabe, the veteran jurassic park trainer, takes Ruby on a stroll around the park for her first work day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Visual reference for the seven dinosaurs can be seen here ! https://i.imgur.com/Aq3KDb6.png

First day of work, Ruby was already on the field, with a new dinosaur of her own. She could barely believe it, but little did she know that she hadn't seen anything yet.  
You was probably more excited about showing the park to her new coworker than Ruby already was. She was dragging the young girl towards her jeep, the microraptor struggling not to fall off her new human partner's shoulder.

You grabbed her keys, showing off tossing and catching them. It was time for a morning drive around the park.  
"Hey, you know you can sit on the front next to me, right?" chuckled You, as Ruby was already squeezing herself and her pocket dinosaur in the far back of the car, into the tight space next to all the equipment crates. The rookie abandoned her hard-earned back seat and claimed her rightful spot next to her mentor. Does that mean You already considers her to be her equal ? This thought alone brings sparkles into her pretty green eyes.

You starts her staff jeep, loud, upbeat music immediately blasting into the car's unnecessarily big speakers. Yoshiko, who was curled into a ball on Ruby's lap, squeaked and jumped to the back seat to hide from the sudden noise.  
"Full speed ahead!" The car roared louder than any of the park's residents ever could, and the girls were now on their stroll into Ruby's new workplace.

Yoshiko, her head peeking out of the car window, was chirping and humming happily as the wind rustled through her iridescent black feathers. Was she a bird, a cat, a dog ? Neither, that's the perk of being a domesticated microraptor.

"Ruby, I got the right job for you as your first daily task !" said You, almost screaming in hopes she'd be heard over the music, the car and the wind. "We've got an Ankylosaurus, she needs someone to wash her armor plates until they're squeaky clean once a week, think you can handle that ?"  
Ruby immediately grabbed her pocket guide to get a picture of an Ankylosaurus, not entirely sure what they looked like... and most importantly, if they were carnivores...  
"A-Ankylosaurus. Armored herbivore from the late cretaceous, length varies between 20 and 26 feet-  
-Oh ours is smaller than that! She's around 15 feet long, the club on the tip of her tail has never served anything but taking down trees!"  
Patting Ruby's back with a hand and driving with the other, You was confident she'd do a great job with the park's gentle ankylosaurus. It was a perfect candidate for Ruby's first enclosure encounter.

You stopped the car and turned off the music in front of the enclosure. The fence was composed with light metal and weak electricity, further indicating that the Ankylosaurus truly meant very little harm.  
"Why the electricity if she's harmless, though ?" Asked Ruby, still a little nervous.  
"Oh, just mandatory safety measures. Dia's ranger squad made the electric fences an obligation, even for small dinosaurs."  
The older ranger opened the door, inviting Ruby and the microraptor sitting on top of her hat into the enclosure. She took the whistle hanging from her neck and blew it to call the dinosaur.

The ground began shaking rapidly under Ruby's feet, getting more intense every step. Something was running to them.

The ankylosaurus appeared, pushing at least two bushes to make room, and immediately shoved her nose into You's face. They say animals were the most honest when it comes to recognizing good people, and dinosaurs were apparently no exception.  
You, struggling to get the armored puppy to stop licking her face and stomping around, was giving the dinosaur scratches under her chin. She then called her apprentice to come closer.  
"Okay. Give her your hand. She must acknowledge you on her territory first, okay ?  
-O-okay... She won't hurt me, right ?  
-Hanamaru?! Hurting anyone?! Of course not ! She just needs to know when new staff members are introduced, first impressions matter, yknow ?"  
Ruby, taking every ounce of courage stored inside her body, took careful, slow steps towards Hanamaru. The large dinosaur turned towards the new recruit, inquisitive.  
Making all the necessary effort not to startle the armored creature, Ruby looked like someone had slowed her down with a remote. Yoshiko remained perfectly still like a statue, even though she was visibly shaking, just as nervous as her human counterpart.

You gestured Ruby to stop moving forward. Her hand was only a few inches away from Hanamaru's snout, the rest of the distance was hers to make.  
Seeing her new coworker struggling to remain calm, the veteran trainer felt like something needed to be said. "Relax, it's gonna be just like what you did with Kanan, except even less dangerous, got it ?"  
Ruby nodded, now ready for Hanamaru to inspect her and acknowledge her.  
The armored dinosaur examined the new hand. She sniffed it, memorizing every aspect of Ruby's smell. Friend or Foe ? That is every dinosaur's first question when something new enters its territory for sure. She got closer, maybe Ruby's perfume met Hanamaru's standards.  
When she had enough information, when she got Ruby's full profile through her scent, Hanamaru pressed her nose against Ruby's palm. The new trainer had her trust.

But that was not all. Another smell was detected. She looked up, directly into the eyes of the prehistoric crow perched on the new human's hat. Yoshiko, as nervous as a dinosaur her size could ever be, ruffled her feathers to look bigger. But the ankylosaurus wasn't impressed. The deadpan look on her spiky face said it all. Ruby bent forward so Yoshiko would be within Hanamaru's reach. The armored dinosaur sneezed when one of Yoshiko's feathers got vacuumed into her nose, startling the microraptor. But all that's well ends well, as Hanamaru gave Yoshiko a lick on the head with the tip of her tongue, getting her head feathers all messed up. The two trainers laughed at the adorable bonding moment.

"Aye! Now that she's buddy-buddy with everyone, here's your tool! Ruby, catch!" You tossed what looked like a giant toothbrush at the trainer, almost accidentally knocking her out in the process.  
Ruby grabbed a bucket of water, and gave Hanamaru the backscratches of a lifetime. She looked like she was in heaven, swinging from side to side as the rookie did her job making the dinosaur's armor squeaky clean for the week.  
Yoshiko looked a little jealous... she wanted backscratches too! That wasn't fair! The microraptor bounced off the hat of her trainer, and was gliding her way to the brush, on Hanamaru's shoulder... not expecting the tool at least twice her size to completely squish her. The small carnivore, feathers all messed up again, retreated back to her living perch, chirping as if a scandal had just happened. The larger dinosaur looked amused.

You, watching the scene, couldn't be happier to finally have a coworker. It had been quite lonely in the park lately. Sure, the dinosaurs were here, but having a human partner was what was missing in her life.

Fourty minutes later, Ruby was done cleaning Hanamaru's armor. The ankylosaurus had nodded off and was resting her head on Ruby's lap, a microraptor curled into a ball on top of her stone hard head.  
"You clearly have a thing for wrangling these creatures, Ruby ! You're a natural !" said the other trainer, walking up to her. "Look at them, they already love you ! No wonder Mari chose you for this job."  
Ruby gave a pat to her feathered partner, who purred loudly in response.  
"Hey, miss Watanabe...  
-Oh, just call me You. Y'know, we're friends now. It'd be awkward if you called me by my last name...  
-A-alright. You... I have a question."

  
You sat down next to the multispecies cuddle pile, leaning against her rookie protege.  
"Did Mari give you research partner, too ?  
-Oh... yeah. She did. I'll take you to her enclosure at some point, but you're not ready to see her yet.  
-Why not ?  
-She's a larger carnivore, her jaw is three quarters of your height. She's domesticated, but... it'd be too risky to take you to her paddock right now."  
This sentence gave Ruby shivers down her spine.  
"So... you don't trust your partner ?  
-I do, I do. I've been training her ever since she hatched. But... I also know how playful she can get sometimes. Your safety comes first."  
Ruby suddenly felt an arm on her shoulder, as You immediately pulled her closer.  
"Even if I trust my partner, I still want to protect you the most."

Ruby didn't had time to process what You just said as the older trainer's walky talky emitted a sound. Someone from the staff was screaming into it, and sounded pretty panicked. The trainer got up to get the call.  
The rookie couldn't hear anything the two were saying, but according to You's body language, this was bad. Really bad. In case she was needed as well, Ruby woke her microraptor up, and slipped away from underneath Hanamaru's chin. You came back rushing, grabbed Ruby by the arm, and rushed the whole crew into the jeep.

The car roared again, leaving a confused Hanamaru into her enclosure.  
Still unaware of the situation, Ruby tapped her coworker's shoulder.  
"What happened?!  
-Ruby, get your rifle, your tranquilizers and your tasers. This is not a drill."  
The trainer got interrupted by a sharp turn, drifting her way directly into the predator section of the park.

"We've got a spinosaurus on the loose."


	3. Jailbreak thrill

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> During Ruby's first day at work, a dangerous predator has successfuly escaped her enclosure : the park's spinosaurus is on the loose.  
> As You gets her partner out of her enclosure, Ruby learns about the dark history of Site B.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Visual reference for the seven dinosaurs can be seen here ! https://i.imgur.com/Aq3KDb6.png

Everything on Ruby's first day seemed fine until now. She was able to pet every single dinosaur she met : Yoshiko, Hanamaru... even Kanan, a velociraptor. It looked like a dream.  
So why... why would everything spiral out of control now, out of all times ?

You's foot was pressed all the way onto the car's accelerator. She had the tough look of someone who was internalizing all the fear and stress this disaster put her under.  
A spinosaurus on the loose... Ruby grabbed, once again, her pocket Jurassic Park encyclopedia, readjusting her hat so Yoshiko wouldn't fall off.  
"S-Spinosaurus Aegyptiacus is one of the largest c-carnivores of the theropod family. Its crocodile-like jaw can chop you into a half effortlessly, and its stamina is remarkable.... O-Oh dear, You, is that what we're dealing with ?!  
-That's the one. She's been transferred from site B and she was moved into an enclosure without her adaptation quarantine. I told Mari this was a terrible Idea, but... as always, she didn't listen.  
-... Site B ?"

You took another sharp turn, the jeep stayed in the air for at least three seconds before the wheels would touch the ground again.

"Ruby, you don't know about Site B, do you ?  
-No, I...I don't... Should I know ?  
-...Site B. Also known as Isla Sorna. This island is part of the archipelago, and was left abandoned for years after a catastrophe... This was where the original dinosaurs were cloned, and its inhabitants are roaming wild. Our Spino comes from that site, she doesn't have domestication genes.  
-... At all ?  
-At all. She was one of the originals, domestication genes weren't even a thing. You touch her, you seal your doom."

You stepped on the gas further than ever, completely missing the turn towards the spinosaurus' enclosure.  
"Y-You, I think we're going the wrong way...  
-Oh no we are not. I have a plan."

You parked herself in front of an enclosure. Ruby couldn't read the badly damaged sign, the dinosaur inside remained a mystery.  
"Stay there with Yoshiko. I'll be quick."  
Ruby didn't had enough time to say anything, her coworker had already dashed through the enclosure's entrance. Nothing could be seen inside, the vegetation was too dense.

The sound of You's whistle could be heard from inside. She blew it again, and again, she was calling something... Ruby and Yoshiko both jumped back as a loud roar was heard in response inside the enclosure.  
Footsteps. Earth-shattering footsteps. Louder, and stronger than what Hanamaru's ever were.  
The rookie almost had a heart attack when a huge carnotaurus ran from her enclosure. The girl and her microraptor were already running for their lives, when You's voice called them back.  
"Hey, hey ! Don't be afraid ! I'm the one who let her out !"  
Ruby was looking around for her mentor... until she noticed the carnotaurus had a saddle.

You was riding her partner into battle.

"I-I thought you said it was too early to meet her !  
-Only Chika has enough authority to stop rampaging site B transfers. She's the park's shepherd."  
Chika took a glance at the rookie, growling. As frightening as the sound was, it wasn't menacing, she was communicating.  
"Now. Hop on."  
You snapped her fingers, her vivid orange carnotaurus bending down to ground level to let the two passengers onto the saddle.

Ruby and Yoshiko were both shaking and chattering their teeth as they settled on Chika's back. You gave a sharp blow into her whistle, Chika roaring as she charged into a hunt around the park.

Every now and then, the carnotaurus would randomly stop, tracking down the scent of the loose spinosaurus. She ran in circles, trying to get the wind's right direction to locate the larger predator. The chase resumed when she figured out the whereabouts of the site B dinosaur.

"Are you guys okay back there ?" asked Chika's trainer. Ruby wasn't quite sure about this, but Yoshiko let out a sharp chirp, everything was working out fine so far. For her, at least.

Chika stopped the chase, and let out the loudest howl she could manage.  
"... Ruby. Yoshiko. Take a good hold on the saddle, and don't let go."  
Before Ruby could ask why, a horrifying, bone-chilling shriek was heard from behind the trees.

  
Something larger than Chika was coming closer, trees were breaking at every earth-shaking step.

Riko appeared.

Her teeth were sharper than anything Ruby had seen. The blood red tint of her scales truly made her look like an ambassador of death. Even the look in her amber eyes was different than any dinosaur she had seen up until now. Side B dinosaurs were truly a different kind. She was snapping her incredible jaw in Chika's direction to intimidate her, but the carnotaurus wasn't having any of it. She stood still, leaning backwards to look taller. Ruby could feel the weight of her body slipping from the saddle already.

"Charge your sleep darts, Ruby. Chika is going to expose Riko's weak points for us. When I give you my signal, shoot.  
-... Does Chika stand a chance ?  
\- Not alone."  
You gave an affectionate pat on her trained carnotaurus' shoulder, fully aware that she was risking her dinosaur's life doing this.

"Go."

Chika roared and charged towards Riko, pushing her to the side with everything she had. Riko, struggling to keep her balance, grabbed the smaller, horned carnivore's skull between her large hands, pushing her back almost effortlessly.  
The carnotaurus, even in the middle of her fight, would regularly take a glance on her back to make sure everyone is still on board.  
She pushed herself back up, trying to take Riko down from the sides. She was pushing, pushing again, desperately trying to make the crocodile-like dinosaur fall over to expose her weak points to her human riders. Riko, perfectly still, keeping perfect balance, would not lose Chika from her sight.  
She waited for the right moment to brutally bite Chika's neck. The carnotaurus, yelping in pain, was trying to slip out of the death trap she got herself into.

That was the main difference between them.  
One was going for a tactical neutralizing attack, the other, for the kill.

You hastily grabbed her taser from her weaponry belt, activated it, and placed it on Riko's snout to save her dinosaur. She immediatelly let Chika go, shrieking in pain as electricity was running into her skull.  
Chika was badly wounded. At this rate, she'd collapse no more than five minutes from this instant, and would probably die in half an hour.  
And if that wasn't bad enough, Riko was now fully aware of the smaller lifeforms on the carnotaurus' back.  
The orange theropod took a defensive posture, determined to protect You and her partners from harm. You, on the other hand, grabbed her tranquilizer, worried for her poor carnotaurus' life.

Riko charged again for another attack. Chika quickly dodged the deadly jaw aiming for her, running around Riko in circles to exhaust her. If it was not for the injury, this would've been the best strategy as of the current situation.  
You gave Chika encouraging rubs on her neck, and spoke to her carnotaurus.  
"Chika. I know I trained you never to do this. But this time, only this time, you are allowed to use your jaw."  
The dinosaur, still reluctant to go against her partner's training, gave You a panicked whimper, to which the trainer let go off the saddle straps to directly hug her dinosaur instead.

"Chika. Bite."

Chika felt like this order let all the chains of her instincts break. She was now furiously attacking Riko from the sides at alarming speed, aiming for the neck to pin her down. Riko, underestimating her enemy since the beginning, could not keep up with the nimble carnotaurus pushing her from every angle.  
The spinosaurus raised her hand to scratch her opponent. She ignored her injuries, pushing herself forward to do anything to neutralize Riko.

Yoshiko was still watching from the top of her human partner's head. Something was up, and she knew it. She was emitting a guttural growl, ruffling her feathers... and jumped... before Ruby, horrified, could even try to catch the tip of her tail.  
A glorious glide towards the spinosaurus, and she landed right onto her eyes, completely blocking her view. Riko was struggling to get the small carnivore off her eyes, shaking her head, hitting herself on nearby trees to get the parasite off her face.  
Yoshiko, struggling to stay on, gave Chika a chirp. The two were now cooperating.

Chika crawled underneath the larger predator, and pounced, uppercutting her with all her body's weight. Riko was losing balance. The carnotaurus knew it was the right moment to chomp on her neck to pin her down to the ground.

  
"NOW, RUBY !"

The two trainers, tranquilizers in hand, were shooting darts at Riko's exposed underbelly like there was no tomorrow. Ruby, who had never shot a live target before, was screaming everything she had in panic. You, however, never missed her target.  
The spinosaurus was struggling, flailing her taloned hands at Chika, in a desperate attempt to break free. The carnotaurus kept Riko in place. The tranquilizers were slowly kicking in, Riko's struggle was gradually getting weaker... weaker... weaker... until it stopped, spinosaurus tranquilized and neutralized.  
Chika let go off Riko's throat, to reveal than even after You's orders, she had not injured Riko at all. No bite marks, no blood, she couldn't bring herself to hurt her.  
Yoshiko climbed back on the victorious dinosaur, to return on her perch. No injuries aside from a few minor scratches. Chika's wounds, however, were worse than they looked in the middle of action.

You quickly grabbed her walky talky.  
"Trainer unit calling Ranger division. Trainer unit calling Ranger Division."  
Another voice was heard, muffled, on the other side of the line.  
"This is Dia Kurosawa from Ranger Division.  
-We have a neutralized spinosaurus and a badly injured carnotaurus in front of the sauropod enclosure. You can put Riko in post-transfer quarantine, however Chika needs intensive care a.s.a.p. How long until you get there ?  
-Got the report. I'm sending transport and medical units to you, make it 5 minutes.  
-Roger.  
-... You. Is my sister alright ?  
-Affirmative. Chika and Yoshiko protected her with everything they had. Your sister got out without a scratch.  
-Got it. ... thank you. Over."

The two trainers got off the carnotaurus' back and got her to lie down next to her opponent to limit further damage. The carnotaurus, whimpering in pain, still took the energy to lick the sleeping Riko's cheek, a gesture of forgiveness, despite obviously being the one who suffered the most of the fight.  
You kneeled down next to her wounded dinosaur, rubbing her hand in circles on her snout.  
"It's going to be okay... It's going to be okay, I promise you..."  
Chika was wagging the tip of her tail. Her partner was here. She will make it out of the care unit for her.

Ruby, however, was inspecting the tranquilized spinosaurus. This would probably be the only time she could pet her... Even a dinosaur from Site B like her deserved to be loved. She reached her hand towards Riko's chin, and scratched it. Yoshiko joined, climbed down Ruby's arm, and rubbed her face against the sleeping predator.  
She wouldn't notice, she wouldn't remember when she'd wake up, but at least, it was done.

Helicopters could be heard. From one, doctors came down rushing to help with Chika's wounds. From the others, the security unit was putting chains on Riko's sleeping body to fly her back into a confined space, away from visitors and other dinosaurs until she'd be redeemable for her public return.

"You, is there any hope for these two ?  
-Chika will make it. I know it. She recovered from worse.  
-... And... how about Riko ?  
-... I don't know. Mari tried to inject new genes already, but... they never worked. That doesn't stop her from trying, though."

Yoshiko curled into a ball on top of Ruby's explorer hat, purring.  
"... Why is Mari so involved into dinosaur domestication research ?  
-That's... a difficult topic, Ruby." You stretched her arms, her bones cracking after every move. She'll feel this the morning after, for sure.  
"I'll show you, someday. I promise. But not after this."

The tired trainer gave an affectionate pat on Ruby's shoulder and walked away.  
"Our Jeep is parked in front of Chika's enclosure. Come, I'll drive you to your new work apartment."

The two girls were strolling through the park again, too shocked of what had just happened to say anything. Yoshiko was fast asleep on her partner's head, recovering from her tiring interference in today's struggle.  
You parked her jeep in front of a wooden house, with a beautiful view on the sea surrounding the island. She unlocked the door, and showed Ruby the room she made specifically for her. It had everything : a comfy bed, a cat basket and pet toys for Yoshiko, dinosaur figures and encyclopedias, a music player...  
"This is the trainer HQ, we're gonna live here together. If you need me, I'll be on a stroll around the park.  
-But... aren't you tired ?  
-I'm a veteran, I can do this. However, as a rookie, you should take a rest. That wasn't anything near something anyone should deal with on her first day."  
You gave Ruby a warm hug, embracing her with warmth and unconditional love.  
"Yoshiko needs rest too. Stay here for her, okay ? ... I'll take care of the park."

Before Ruby could respond, You bounced her way into her roaring jeep, on her way to work again.

Ruby closed her eyes. She truly was exhausted, but... she couldn't sleep on her own like this.  
Suddenly, warmth. Something soft. It was... oh, feathers.  
Yoshiko, like a real cat, curled into a ball next to her human partner. Ruby, almost tearing up, cuddled with the little thing until they both fell asleep.

... The morning after, Ruby was woken up hastily by someone tapping her shoulder. She had not noticed she had been asleep for so long. You was back, and her face looked like trouble was around the corner again.  
"Are you awake ?  
-Y...yeah, now I am, that's for sure...  
-Mari called us. She wants us in her office in five minutes."

Ruby chugged down a cup of coffee You made for her. Yikes, it had no sugar and no cream, that was bitter to say the least. But at least this will keep her awake and alert.  
She grabbed Yoshiko, and got into the jeep again.

They had no idea this new task would be much, much worse than the last...


	4. Living weapons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The two rangers, You and Ruby, have been called to Mari's office for an very important matter. None of the girls are prepared for the horror they are about to discover in the quarantine zone, and more specifically... on the lowest floor.

Break of dawn in Isla Nublar was a beautiful sight to see. Not a soul was awake, except for the early morning sauropods singing at the tropical sunrise. Their song sounded like a lullaby, and that really didn't help Ruby stay awake.

She stretched, and let out a yawn highly contagious for her sleepy microraptor, curled on her lap.  
"... You look exhausted, you want more coffee ?" asked You, handing her own cardboard cup to the rookie from the one hand she wasn't using for driving.  
"N-no thank you, I'm good...  
-I can put more sugar in it if that's the issue, yknow... Dia's a sweet tooth too, I assume it runs in the family, yeah ?"  
Well, You figured it out, but even with lots of sugar, Ruby still wouldn't be able to enjoy her drink.

You pulled over at the main building. This was where it all started for Ruby... It has only been a day, yet with all the packed action, it felt like a month already...  
The two girls hurried to Mari's office. They found the blonde scientist without her goofy glasses, without Kanan, and most importantly, with a gloomy look on her face. Something was up.  
"M-Mari, did something happen to Kanan ?  
-It's alright Ruby, Kanan isn't involved in that mess... I left her in her enclosure to keep her safe."  
Oh thank goodness. If anything happened to that sweet raptor, Ruby would probably feel terrible, she was her first dinosaur encounter. It's good to know she's safe... but... safe from what, now that she thinks of it ?

Suddenly, a voice came from behind the girls.  
"Mari, you look awful, have you had enough sleep lately ?!"  
Ruby turned back and had the wonderful surprise to see her sister, in full ranger attire. Dia gave a warm smile to the trainer, reaching her arms out for a hug Ruby immediately ran to her for.  
"I heard you handled the spinosaurus outbreak like a champion yesterday..." said Dia, gently stroking Ruby's hair with her delicate fingertips. "I'm so glad you're safe, I nearly had a heart attack when I found out you were on field."  
The ranger, still holding her sister close, interrupted the tender moment to let You know about good news before whatever would come next on Mari's end.  
"Your carnotaurus is recovering very well, my medic units say she'll be back in her enclosure in less than a week." To these news, You gasped excitedly like a child getting her puppy back.

"Alright, Mari, drop the long face and tell us what this early morning ruckus is all about." Said Dia, letting go off her sister's embrace, even though Ruby could've used a longer hug.  
"Not here. It's confidential.  
-Then where ?! You took us to your office, there's a reason !  
-I needed all three of you to come with me. I'll call a helicopter. Ruby, I need you to keep Yoshiko in her enclosure today."  
Ruby felt her heart crushing into tiny pieces to the thought of leaving her microraptor behind.  
"-W-Why ? Why can't I bring my partner ?  
-We're going to quarantine zone."

Twenty minutes later, the girls were flying towards quarantine, a zone accessible to restricted personel only where all dinosaurs not exposable to the public were enclosed. They had made a short stop to return Yoshiko to her enclosure for the day.  
"Will she be okay ? You said the rest of her flock was mean to her...  
-It can't possibly be meaner than what I'm about to show you. Trust me."  
The girls, to such an uncharacteristically pessimistic answer, all felt a chill down their spine in unison.

The helicopter landed, to reveal a massive building that looked more like a prison-like fort than anything that should belong in a zoo. The look of the fortress alone made it seem like the dinosaurs locked in this place were considered more like criminals than animals.  
As Mari entered the code for the access to the quarantine, Dia pulled Ruby closer to her and charged her rifle. "Stay with me."  
The scientist turned back to the girls as a triple lock entrance door opened the way. "What we're looking for is on the bottom floor. Follow me, and don't get lost."

When they entered, it was much worse than anything Ruby could have imagined. It was a maze of madness: the dinosaurs, carnivores for the most part, were all locked in small, claustrophobia inducing titanium cells, chains on each one of their necks. There were countless of these cells, and each specimen confined looked more dangerous than the previous. A ceratosaurus, scratching the screeching metallic walls, a baryonyx, screaming and crying as it was gradually falling to madness, a tyrannosaurus, walking in circles, glaring at You with the look of a killer... There was no doubt about this. They were all Site B imports.  
"Why do you keep rescuing these ?!" Whispered Dia, more disgusted and scared than anyone among the group.  
"You should know better than anyone that my father worked on Side B long ago."  
So... that was the truth. Ruby was now fully focused on Mari rather than on the terrifying dinosaurs the scientist claims she can rescue.

"He dedicated his whole life to the revival of these magnificent creatures, he truly loved each and every single one of them."  
The little flock of early birds stopped in front of an enclosure with a very familiar dinosaur. A blood red spinosaurus was lying down, inert, whimpering.  
"... Riko." Ruby couldn't help but feel deep empathy for the obviously depressed spinosaurus she tranquilized just the day before.  
"These creatures are suffering from the overload of aggressive genes our predecessors put into them... I will do whatever it takes to redeem what my father left behind him.  
-... Left... behind ?"  
Mari clenched her fist in pain. This had to be said.  
"My father... lost his life to a creature that should never had existed."  
You, aware of the story, gave an affectionate pat on Mari's shoulder.  
"That specimen is gone, though. It was the only one of its kind, your father has been avenged.  
-...You are wrong."  
Mari stormed off to the elevator. The bottom floor, where the matter would be revealed, was awaiting.

Somehow, the girls felt more and more pressured as the lift went further into the ground.  
The floor was reached, a little, cheerful chime was heard from the elevator before opening the doors that would reveal a single, apparently empty enclosure. It had multiple layers of reinforced glass, electrified titanium bars, and spikes to ward off what would probably be the most dangerous specimen in the park.  
Ruby naively walked towards the enclosure to see what was inside, but quickly jumped back as a purple raptor looking thing, at least twice bigger than human size, tackled on the bars with all its might. It didn't even mind the electric shock, as if it chose to endure the pain for its urge to kill.  
Dia grabbed her sister and ran back to a safer distance. "Mari EXPLAIN what this monstruosity is!! That is no dinosaur!!"  
Ruby, heart still beating like a drum, grabbed her pocket guide, trying to see if anything in the park species looked like this downright terrifying creature... and found nothing in the registry.  
"There is another one in the enclosure." Mari took a step forward. "Maybe some of you will recognize this one better." she clapped her hands, only to reveal a larger, paler counterpart to the murderous lizard.  
"...Those things can camouflage... I... I know what they are..." You fell to her knees in utter disbelief.

"...Mari. You incubated an Indominus Rex."

Mari felt the guilt rising inside her chest. She was shaking from every fiber of her body. You couldn't believe what she was seeing live before her eyes.  
"And the smaller one... there's no mistake. That's an indoraptor. Two dinosaurs created by mankind years ago... Why... why would you bring such demons back from the grave, Mari ?"  
"...My father died to the jaw of an Indominus Rex."  
Ruby's skin went pale like porcelain. Dia was right. These weren't dinosaurs, they were horror movie creatures.  
"I... I thought I could incorporate a higher dose of domestication genes to Sarah and Leah but... their base genome rejected them instantly..."  
Mari was on the verge of breaking down.  
"Site B was nothing but a prototype leading to these two... I... I naively failed to fix my father's mistakes..."  
You banged her fist on the cold, hard floor. She was furious.  
"The two only specimens DIED !! Why wasn't this enough for you ?! Why did you recreate the very thing that murdered your family ?! Why couldn't you MOVE ON ?!"  
Mari couldn't respond. She knew it was her entire fault to attempt redeeming those two species born of the very essence of evil. Some things were better off left in the past, and the two horrifying dinosaurs now grinning at them were no exception. Ruby felt terrible for everyone in this situation. She was paralyzed, terrified of both the dinosaurs and her friends arguing over them.

"... Why did you call us in such a wretched place?" asked Dia, not showing she was just as furious as You was, if not more.  
"I want our new recruit to kill these dinosaurs."

The room went completely silent. None of the girls were prepared for such an order. This was extremely uncharacteristic of Mari, who had always wanted everyone and everything to be allowed a redemption.  
"M-Mari... there must be another way...  
-You heard me, Ruby. Kill them. I will watch you do it."  
Ruby was fighting back tears. She couldn't possibly hurt a dinosaur. No matter how dangerous they are. Besides, they looked like their own messed up genetics made them suffer constantly. She was too empathetic for this. Dia raised her voice, roaring like thunder in defense of her poor sister.  
"You created them ! YOU dispose of them ! We don't have to fix your mistakes and do your dirty work !  
-Dia, I never said you were going in the enclosure with Ruby."  
The ranger, too shocked to say anything, saw the scientist grabbing her sister and pushing her towards the enclosure. The grievance of her father was slowly driving Mari to madness.  
"If I can't fix his mistakes, I'll avenge him. I'm sure he's on the front seat of Heaven to watch you kill these... once and for all. It's an order."  
As a rookie, Ruby couldn't stand up to Mari, who was brutally pushing the unexperienced trainer into the enclosure's side door.

She was locked inside, there was no way out.

Ruby, panicking like she never had before, was aggressively banging on the doors with all her strength, screaming her sister's name... only to find out the enclosure was soundproof... She could only see You, breaking down in tears, and Dia, paralyzed in terror as she watched, powerless.  
The little trainer's heart almost stopped when something sharply blew air into her hair... She didn't even had to turn back to know Leah was playing games with her new prey. She was hissing, it almost sounded like a cunning laugh.  
The indoraptor aggressively tapped her taloned, skeletal hand on Ruby's shoulder to let it slide down her back. She wasn't going for the kill right away like a normal untrained raptor would... she was playing with Ruby's feelings and weaknesses, for her own entertainment only.  
She chirped at Sarah, to make sure the larger, equally lethal dinosaur acknowledged Ruby as Leah's prey. Now, the indominus would enjoy the sight of the show. This was now a game of cat and mouse between the trainer and the indoraptor.  
"... Why did they make you like this..." Muttered Ruby, as Leah passed the tip of her claw a few milimeters away from the trainer's neck, still playing games.  
"What kind of person would create an animal meant to suffer for entertainment..."  
Leah, slightly annoyed by the now calm and resigned Ruby, loudly chirped directly into her ear to attempt startling her. Ruby surprisingly remained perfectly still.  
"I can't raise my weapon on you. Your origin doesn't define you... this is wrong."

Before Leah would chirp into Ruby's other ear, she found herself in the trainer's warm embrace. You, on the other side of the glass, was clearly screaming at Ruby to stop this madness.  
"If I'm locked here with you to die, at least, don't let me go without hugging you."  
Leah was now utterly confused by the small human stroking the quills on her head. She was paralyzed. She had never felt something like this before. Sarah was still watching, the grin on her face had now faded. On the other side of the window, Dia was desperately trying to take the enclosure keys from Mari by force.  
"You haven't done anything wrong..." gently whispered Ruby, tears in her eyes, who had already accepted her fate to the claws of the creature she was petting. If she had to go, she wanted to give this poor hybrid a minute of unconditional love...

And it seemed like it was working, until an incredibly loud roar filled with primal rage was heard from Sarah. Leah instantly responded, and sent Ruby flying to the walls with a brutal tail smash.

At this moment, Dia bursted into the enclosure after taking the keys from Mari, dropping a smoke bomb at the two hybrids to confuse them. Covering her face, Dia dragged her half-conscious sister out of the enclosure. But before she could lock the doors, something tackled it back open with incredible strength.

Everything faded to black for Ruby. She only came back to her senses a good 30 minutes later, on You's lap. The older ranger was sobbing uncontrollably.

"Ruby ! Oh Ruby you're okay ! Oh thank goodness you're alive !" She pulled Ruby very close, and gave her the warmest hug she'll probably receive in her entire life. Ruby, naturally, returned the hug, pressing her nose onto You's shoulder... until she saw the broken fence, the destroyed control panel, and most importantly, the lack of dinosaurs in the enclosure.

"... W-What happened here ?!"  
It took a lot of courage from You to say the terrible truth, which Ruby had already suspected.

"Sarah and Leah escaped from quarantine."


	5. Struggle for respect

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sarah and Leah, the top secret Indominus Rex and Indoraptor incubated by Mari, escaped from the highly guarded quarantine zone they were stored in. It's up to Ruby, You and Dia to solve this issue in the least damaging or cruel way possible. It seems like Ruby is thinking of doing the impossible...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Visual reference for the seven dinosaurs can be seen here ! https://i.imgur.com/Aq3KDb6.png

Ruby could still feel the pain of the impact from earlier. Her bones were aching. Her head was spinning. But there was no time, You and Ruby were climbing up what seemed to be an endless staircase to return to the main floor of the building.

"How long has it been since they escaped?" asked Ruby, already out of breath.  
"Leah escaped just when you collapsed. That thing's darn smart, she disabled the security board to let Sarah out. I'd say it's been twenty to thirty minutes.  
-So... they could be anywhere ?  
-Exactly... Dia is waiting for us outside of the quarantine zone. She'll keep us updated."  
They didn't need updates from the ranger, to their horror, half of the site B enclosures had been broken, and their prisoners killed in cold blood. Ruby was horrified. She couldn't control the tears coming from her eyes, You lowered her hat to offer a minute of silence as they proceeded through the corridors.

... Ruby suddenly turned back and ran the other way before You could catch her.  
"Where are you going ?!" the older trainer ran after the redhead, only to find out she had stopped in front of the confined spinosaurus' cell.

Fortunately, Riko wasn't harmed. Not a single crack on her enclosure, they didn't even bother with her. The hybrids probably thought it was better to target the smallest specimens stored for their pointless killing spree. However, the spinosaurus looked distressed. She was twisting, squirming like a worm in panic, trying to break free from the chains holding her still. She was terrified, like a prey. The hybrids weren't to be trifled with.  
Now reassured that the spinosaurus wasn't harmed in any way, the two trainers met up with the ranger by the entrance. It seemed like she just returned from a patrol to locate the monsters.  
"Ruby !" Dia dropped her rifle, and ran to her sister for a hug sobbing all the water out of her entire body. Her sister was alive. Without a scratch, aside from a few back pains. It was a miracle.  
Not a word was exchanged between the two sisters. It felt like the embrace caused time to slow down, at a peaceful, quiet pace.

"Any news from the hybrids ?" interrupted the other trainer. Dia let go off her sister, and picked her rifle back up, the two trainers following her.  
"Sadly, none of our heat detecting sensors can locate them. It's as if they could change their body temperature to willingly escape our tracking systems. Let alone their previously demonstrated camouflage skills...  
-So... no way to find these two until they show themselves and kill everything, huh... ?  
-Exactly, as awful as it sounds... time is against us as well, Mari is on a solitary hunt for them. And what she brought along are definitely not tranquilizing darts..."  
Hunting... that what it was all about, Ruby thought. The gears inside her brain were spinning at full speed, a mastermind plot was coming together in the rookie's brain.

"If that's a hunter you want, I think I have the right girl for the job."

Dia and You, confused, didn't know what the new, talented recruit meant. It was hard to follow.  
"I have a plan. I-I know, it will sound crazy... but...  
-It's better than anything." smiled Dia, surprisingly confident in her sister's trainer talent.  
"W-well sis, first, I'd need to get Yoshiko-" Ruby couldn't finish her sentence, Dia pulled Ruby and You to her own ranger jeep. It was very different in shape and color from the trainer ones. To each job its car, it seems.  
"So Microraptor enclosure it is. Let's hope the hybrids haven't already made this place one of their stops..."  
Unlike You's car, Dia's was dead silent. Probably for stealth operations. But... that didn't make it any slower either, on the contrary.

The ranger, a much more careful driver than You could ever be, pulled over next to the microraptor pen. It wasn't damaged, the hybrids hadn't been in this direction yet. Ruby, reassured that no microraptor casualties were made, bounced through the enclosure's entrance, and called her dinosaur's name. It didn't take long for Yoshiko to caw in response.  
Ruby looked around the enclosure to see in which tree Yoshiko was perched... and there she was, clinging onto the tallest tree like a tiny, feathered koala.  
"Yoshiko !! What are you doing up there, come down !!"  
The microraptor screeched in response. She didn't want to come down, she was throwing a dino tantrum. Ruby had to come closer and shake the tree to invite her microraptor to glide.  
"I'm glad you're okay ! I'm sorry for leaving you here, I know you don't like it here... But I had no choice !"  
Yoshiko really didn't want to come down. She hissed at her trainer, obviously scandalized that her own human partner left her with the rest of her god-awful flock. Ruby, almost out of ideas to get her dinosaur to come down, remembered maybe the treats she carried in her trainer backpack would help... she made sure to take the carnivore ones, and raised her hand, showing the snack to the dinosaur in the clearest way she could, despite the high altitude the small avian was giving judgemental glares from.  
"Here, I have a treat for you ! It's a reward for being so patient with me !"  
Ruby tossed the little bite-sized snack in the air, to which Yoshiko let herself fall off the tree to grab it... forgetting to spread her wings in her vertiginous dive. Ruby had to throw herself at the prehistoric raven to catch her mid-air.  
"Gee, you're so reckless, you're so silly... just like me !" Ruby scratched the head of her tiny dinosaur, which was now chewing on her treat and purring like a little kitty.

Now reunited, the trainer baby-carried Yoshiko out of the enclosure, where Dia, surprisingly, gave her a delicate headpat as well. It was the first time any of the trainers had seen Dia affectionate towards a dinosaur, and it wasn't even guaranteed Mari herself had seen anything like this.  
The jeep was now driving back to quarantine. "So... you're telling me you want Yoshiko to track the hybrids down ?" asked You, not entirely sure of the plan.  
"Nope ! But I need her help to get on someone else's side."  
You and Dia looked at each other, not sure what Ruby meant. But if she had a plan, it was better than nothing. They decided to trust her.

"Sis, where's the quarantine laboratory ?" the trainer asked, in front of the prison's broken entrance, her microraptor back on top of her head.  
"... Why would you want to stop there ?" ... Dia was starting to suspect the trainer's idea, which she confirmed the second immediately after :  
"I want as many domestication genes as possible for our tracker.  
-... Ruby... You're not... thinking of taming Riko, are you ?"  
The trainer turned back to her sister, a confident smile on her face.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't !"

The two other girls were exchanging panicked glances at each other. Dia pulled Ruby by the bandana around her neck.  
"There is no way I'm letting you in a Side B enclosure after you risked your life with the Indoraptor.  
-Dia. It was working. The domestication genes do exist. I saw it in her eyes.  
-Then why in the world are the two demons out there RIGHT NOW killing everything on their path ?! Explain this !!  
-Because they're dormant. I have to try on Riko."  
Dia rubbed her temples in circles. "So you're telling me you're going to wake their puppy traits just like that ?! Ruby, come back to reality.  
-It was working. You weren't close enough to see the look in Leah's eyes." The trainer firmly stood up to her sister, her microraptor chirping in the exact same tone to copy her human counterpart.  
The older sister, getting carried away with emotion, didn't notice she had just given a hard slap on Ruby's cheek. Upon realization, the ranger broke into tears and begged her sister for forgiveness. Ruby, to the sudden pain running through her cheek, felt the tears coming.  
"I'm... I can't lose you, Ruby...  
-You won't. You'll see.  
-I cannot let you into that spinosaurus' enclosure !! Not alone !  
-I never said I'd come alone, Dia..." To these words, Ruby held her sister's hand in deep affection. "Would you... come with me ? To keep me safe ?"  
Dia's fear of loss instantly turned into a strong will to do anything possible to help her sister. Of course she'd come. The sisters gave each other a warm hug, which Yoshiko joined by wrapping her jet black wings around the two humans.

The Kurosawas were now ready to enter Riko's quarantine cell, post-incubation genome darts in hand. However, right before opening the cage, Dia turned back to You to give her an order.  
"You. Chika is currently in empty enclosure number 124. Here's the key." The ranger tossed a big, rusted key at the trainer, who barely caught the thing. "Get your carnotaurus, she should have recovered enough to help us."  
A huge, huge smile began to appear on You's face to these words. Dia have the carno rider a gentle headpat.  
"I'm sure she'll be excited to see you..."  
The silver haired girl gave Dia a salute, and ran outdoors to get her beloved carnotaurus back for the operation.  
"Now Ruby, it's you, me, Yoshiko and...  
-... R-Riko."  
The keys turned twice into the lock. The cell was open.

Yoshiko had already crawled underneath Ruby's hat as the trainer was slowly, slowly approaching the napping Spinosaurus. She occasionally looked over her shoulder to make sure her sister was locked on the target if things went chaotic.  
Ruby knew she'd have to apply the darts manually. And by manually, that means climbing on Riko's neck to give her a dose herself. No rifle. She had no idea if it would work. But she had to try.  
She was mere inches away from her when Riko suddenly opened her amber eyes, locked on Ruby. She let out a menacing snarl, but she was not moving... not yet, at least.  
"H-Hiiii... Remember me ? We... had an unfortunate first encounter yesterday..." the trainer moved even slower towards the neck of the dinosaur. She could practically feel Yoshiko shivering from every fiber of her body.  
The spinosaurus blinked at the trainer, hissing. That was... not comforting whatsoever, but it looked like a greeting, right ?  
Ruby slowly opened her treat pouch and took a carnivore snack out. She made sure Riko saw it, and was looking at it.  
"O-Okay I'm going to throw it, open wide. One, two, three." The trainer lightly threw the snack at the spinosaurus, who didn't open the mouth at all. It bounced on her nose and fell to the ground without a sound. She was not interested. The tension was almost physically tangible.

Ruby was now within range of Riko. She gave a quick nod to her sister, not breaking contact with the giant killing machine, who was obviously waiting for Ruby to let her guard down...

She pounced on the spinosaurus and landed on her neck. The fight had begun.

Riko, screaming with everything she had, was trying to get the little individual off her neck, tackling the walls with her sides. Her movements were restricted due to the small cell, and to the chain on her neck, which made it a little bit easier for Ruby to cling onto the spino's neck, struggling for balance.  
She was squirming, shaking, rubbing her face on the hard ground to get Ruby off her. The trainer took a dart out of her equipment belt, and jammed it inside Riko's neck while simultenaously giving her scratches under her chin. "Here, here, I know you can be good ! I know you can be good... please, oh p-please prove me right..." Riko was in panic. She was snapping her jaw at thin air, not able to reach the smaller lifeform injecting something in her organism. Her tail was swinging furiously, the dinosaur was desperately trying to land a hit on the unbeatable target. Ruby was still rubbing her hand in circles on the dinosaur's neck. She screamed at her sister, who was still locked on the spinosaurus.  
"D-DIA !! Can you shoot a single tranquilizing dart at her ?! She doesn't get tired !  
-What ?! But tranquilizing her would ruin the process !  
-A single dart won't be enough to put her to sleep ! It'll just enough for me to stop struggling, though !!" The trainer, to these words almost slipped off the furious dinosaur's neck. Dia, locked on the squirming target, made sure Ruby would be out of range before shooting a dart straight into Riko's hip.

The struggle became much less intense after a few minutes. Ruby was still expertly clinging onto the metallic shackles the dinosaur was wearing on her neck, as if she had been rodeo training all her life.  
She gave a sharp blow into her own trainer's whistle, to which Yoshiko pounced out of her trainer's hat like a magic rabbit, and landed directly on Riko's eyes, blocking her sight completely like on their first encounter. After Yoshiko confirmed a safe landing to her trainer with a cheerful caw, Ruby took a run-up on Riko's long neck to jump directly on her snout, right under the microraptor.  
That spot was much harder to stay on than the previous. But if she failed now, it was all over. Ruby took another genome dart, and injected it in the gums between two of Riko's upper teeth. Ruby knew how dangerous this was, as she could feel the strength of the infamous jaws snapping furiously less than an inch away from her delicate hand.  
Riko, surprisingly, struggled less and less ever since that dart had been injected. Ruby kept the product active, giving the dinosaur frantic head scratches in hopes that this strategy would make the darts work permanently.  
"Riiiiko ! Riko !" The trainer called the dinosaur, trying to calm her down. The struggle got gradually less and less intense. Ruby kept talking to the dinosaur in a very soft voice. Dia, realizing her sister's crazy plan was working, was in admiration in front of her little sister's courage.

The dinosaur, roaring in panic, was exhausted. Did the direct darts work ? There was one way to find out.  
Ruby let go off everything, and landed a kiss on the dinosaur's forehead.  


The struggle ceased instantly. Riko let out a guttural growl... Could it be...  
Ruby snapped her fingers at Yoshiko, who immediately returned to her owner's hat. Despite being able to see again, Riko didn't struggle anymore.  
The trainer took a treat out of her bag, and tossed it in the air. This time, the spinosaurus caught it mid-air. Dia couldn't believe what she just watched before her eyes...  


Her sister tamed the dinosaur.

"I... Is it safe ?  
-I-I think so ! Right, Riko ? Are you on our side, now ?"  
Riko let out a triumphant roar. Ruby has earned Riko's trust, making the spinosaurus the first redeemed side B rescue. Even after Ruby removed her shackles, Riko still didn't turn on her human rider.  
Dia was speechless. She couldn't say anything, but the smile on her face said more than a thousand words ever could.  
"S-Should I try taking her out ?  
-... Absolutely."  
Ruby, barely containing her excitement, gave Riko a light kick from the tip of her foot to get the dinosaur moving. It felt almost magical when the giant theropod walked out of quarantine, serene, graceful.

A voice was calling her name, excitedly. When Ruby looked on the right, A familiar orange carnotaurus, with a few bandages here and there, was trotting her way to the front of the building. She quickly stopped, though, when she saw the blood red dinosaur out of an enclosure again. You, speechless, gave Chika a head pat to reassure her that no fight would take place.  
"I... I can't believe it !! You did it ?!  
-M-hm ! Riko just needed trust and love, I knew it'd work ! Right ?"  
The spinosaurus took a step forward towards the nervous carnotaurus she had encountered not so long ago. Chika, still recovering from what happened that day, was growling menacingly. You was desperately trying to tell her carnotaurus it wasn't like that anymore...  
Ruby gave a double pat on Riko's neck. The dinosaur, to this signal, bowed in front of the smaller carnivore, to the older trainer's, her dinosaur's, and the nearby ranger's surprises.  
Riko stayed in a bowing position, giving a low-frequency growl at Chika to communicate. The carnotaurus, still nervous, took a step forward... another one... and another one, until the horned dinosaur gave the spinosaurus a light nudge with the tip of her snout. Riko returned the same affectionate gesture to the carnotaurus she was fighting against the day just before.  


"... I can't believe my eyes, Ruby..." muttered the carno rider, stars in her eyes. "You did it, you figured out how to cure side B dinosaurs..."  
This would change everything. No more dinosaurs would have to suffer anymore.  
"Well then if the rescue team is all ready..." Dia hopped into her jeep, and charged her tranquilizer rifle. "Let's show these hybrids what we are made of."

Riko and Chika stormed off to track the two hybrids down. The three humans and the microraptor were confident in what they were doing. It was time for Ruby and her dinosaurs to stop the madness of the past.

The hunt had begun.


	6. Lights out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ruby, now with her newly tamed site B spinosaurus, figured out a way to activate the dormant genomes in quarantine dinosaurs. She's on her way, with Dia and You, to get to the two dangerous, loose hybrids before Mari can find them...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Visual reference for the seven dinosaurs can be seen here ! https://i.imgur.com/Aq3KDb6.png

The sun was setting slowly. The Earth was shaking to its core. Trees were breaking, falling to every ground-breaking step heard in the distance. Out of a palm tree forest appeared Riko and Chika, fiercely hunting down the two dangerous hybrids. The two large dinosaurs were free to go in whichever direction they sensed a track from, while their human trainers on their backs, rifles charged, were looking around for the slightest clue. Dia was following them in her camouflage-painted jeep.  
Yoshiko, oh-so-happy to finally have a living perch, was proudly sitting on Riko's snout. The wind was rustling through her shiny black feathers, ah yes, this was perfect. Riko, annoyed by the little creature tickling her nose with the tip of her fuzzy tail, would once in a while force herself to sneeze to scare the little thing away, to no avail.

They patrolled in every area imaginable : near the quarantine zone, around the unfinished enclosures for new specimens, in the research center where fossils are being extracted, nothing. It was as if both the hybrids and mari herself had disappeared out of existence. Ruby was more and more worried that the worst had happened.  
"...Dia, what if Mari already got them ?  
-I know that girl like the back of my hand, if she did shoot them, she would have returned to us and showed us what she did to them."  
Even though that sentence was meant to bring a little hope, Ruby was somehow feeling worse. She had no idea Mari was so scary.  
"It's not like Mari to act like this." adds Dia, concerned. "She must be suffering much more than we could ever imagine."

Ruby didn't had the time to reflect on that sentence as Chika and Riko suddenly stopped, almost crashing Dia's car into the Spinosaurus' ankle in the process. Thankfully, the careful driver had good reflexes.  
They were in front of a large patch of long grass. By large, it was indeed, very very large. One could easily get lost in there.  
"... This is it."  
Ruby gave a gentle pat on Riko's shoulder, as a thank you for carrying her all the way through. She climbed her way down from her dinosaur, almost falling in the process. Yup, better get a saddle next time. She should ask You once all this is over.  
The three girls and the microraptor were ready. It was time to go in. The two trainers ordered their large dinosaurs to patrol the area some more together, and disappeared with the ranger into the grass.

The athmosphere was eerie. Crickets were chirping, the sun was long gone from the horizon, only silhouettes could be seen. The grass was way taller than the girls themselves.  
Ruby was very tempted to grab a flashlight, to which Dia quietly gestured otherwise.  
Yoshiko, acting like a living radar, was looking around, trying to track a scent, a sound, anything...

Suddenly, the grass started quickly rustling around them.

The girls got in position, back-to-back, their rifles fully operational.  
Whatever it was, it kept coming back and disappearing. It was quick and agile. It was... hunting.  
"... Leah." whispered Ruby.  
"No... it's smaller." Dia pulled the two trainers closer.  
The three girls remained completely still as the tall grass kept rustling menacingly. Still no sound was made, none of the trainers could identify the dinosaur... although Dia looked horrified.  
"... Listen. On the left..."  
Ruby and You ported their attention where Dia pointed. It was nearly inaudible, but there was an ultrasound-like frequency. Now that the girls had noticed, it became painful.  
"Sis, what's that ?!" quietly asked the young trainer, covering her ears. Dia pushed her sister's hands away from her head, uncovering her very sensitive ears. She had a grave look on her face.  
"That's a command device. I only know a single person who has one."  
Dia pointed her rifle ahead of her as the grass rustled directly towards them.

"Mari sent Kanan after us."

Kanan immediately pounced over the tall grass, shrieking. Dia shot a single dart in her direction and pushed Ruby to the side before the raptor would get her.  
The ranger grabbed her sister, telling the other trainer to stop shooting and run. The raptor got back up and began the chase.  
The device kept emmitting ultrasonic frequencies. Mari wasn't very far.  
"We have to get out of her range !" yelled Dia, running from side to side and taking unpredictable turns to confuse the raptor.  
"She's probably in the trees on the verge of the grass field ! Let's get inside a building !" You darted ahead, her running speed almost putting Kanan's to shame. Almost. Kanan quickly caught up to her and knocked her down on the ground. Dia immediately let go of her sister, told her to run inside to land a powerful punch on the raptor's snout to let You go.

Ruby was sprinting her way to the nearest building. Her sister ordered her to run, so that's what she's doing. Even though she was awful worried for her coworker and her sister, she must not look the other way. Now she was regretting the patrol order she gave to Riko and Chika. She needed them more than ever.  
She successfully got inside, closed the door behind her and locked everything. She was finally safe... or... was she ?  
As she was running upstairs to check on her friends from the first window she'd see, she felt something strange. In the panic, Ruby didn't notice. She was too worried about her friends' lives to notice the magenta pair of eyes locked on her.  
Ruby would have died if Yoshiko didn't suddenly start whimpering in panic. The trainer froze in place, finally noticing the same sharp breath she felt in her neck in the quarantine enclosure... Was she hiding in here all along, or did she follow her from outside ? She didn't know and didn't care for the answer, the indoraptor was here in any case.

The trainer did not turn to face the dinosaur. She remained almost perfectly still, except for her hands slowly, slowly reaching for the genome capsules on her belt. She had to make sure she was slow enough for Leah not to notice what she was doing. She decided to talk to her to distract the deadly hybrid a little.  
"...We meet again, Leah." The dinosaur, upon hearing her name, lets out a hiss. Yoshiko was absolutely terrified, curled into a ball underneath Ruby's trainer hat.  
She was almost within reach of the capsules. She knew she had to make it quick. She knew, this time, she was alone to tame the creature.  
"I know you're not being yourself right now... How long were you locked in quarantine with your sister ?" The indoraptor, trying to intimidate the trainer, taps the tip of her claws on the floor. It annoys her greatly how the human doesn't panic like she should.

"This time, I'll free you from everything you're not."

Ruby quickly turned to face the dinosaur, only to dive under Leah and inject a dart in her underbelly. She had learned from Riko that dinosaurs were weaker there. The indoraptor, shocked, flailed her arms around, unable to process what was going on. When she finally realized what was happening, Ruby had already rolled her way to the stairs, furiously whistling as a taunt.  
The indoraptor fell for it. She ran downstairs, blinded by her enhanced killer instincts, unable to notice the whole trap Ruby had set up for her.  
The trainer was now running for the elevator, an enraged, mindless killing machine after her.  
This hallway felt like the longest distance she had ever been through. It seemed like the end was getting further at every step. But she finally made it, blew sharply into her whistle to make sure the Indoraptor wasn't catching a break to think.  
When Leah thought she had the trainer cornered, she leapt in for the kill. That's when Ruby pounced over her back like a sheep over a fence, landing a tranquilizing dart in her right leg. Before the Indoraptor would have a chance to turn back in the small elevator, Ruby immediately sent the elevator to a different floor with the dinosaur inside.

Instead of taking this chance to flee like she could have, the trainer ran to the floor she sent the dinosaur to.  
Her walkie talkie started calling for her. It was Dia.  
"Ruby ! Ruby where are you ?! Answer me !  
\- I'm in the luxury hotel, I found Leah ! I'm taking care of this, how are things on your end ?!  
\- You is severely injured. I'm trying to neutralize Mari's device. Chika and Riko still haven't returned.  
\- Things don't look so good... I'll try to earn some time and I'll jump in as soon as possible.  
\- Aknowledged. Over."  
Ruby was almost upstairs as the device spoke again :  
"... Ruby, I'm so proud of you. You've grown to be an exeptional trainer. You better get out of this hotel in a single piece. Over."

The trainer almost shed a tear, but was interrupted by the more menacing than ever chime of the elevator, followed by an outraged roar.  
Leah was feeling dizzy from the second dart Ruby shot before sending her up there, she was obviously fighting against the genome modifications happening in her body. Her plan was working : exhausting the dinosaur would make the reagents work faster.  
She whistled again to get the dinosaur's attention, and took a glorious slide down the three flights of stairs' ramps as Leah continued her chase.  
"Yoshiko, I need you to do what you do best." the trainer spoke to her terrified microraptor, which wouldn't even whimper in response.  
Ruby smiled, poking the inside of her hat as she was still sliding down the ramp. "I'll give you lots of treats if you agree to do this for me~" The microraptor, to the word treat alone, finally showed the tip of her snout to her human counterpart.  
"Yoshiko, lights out !"  
The microraptor pounced towards Leah and blocked her view completely. The bigger dinosaur was still chasing Ruby to the scent, brutally shaking her head to get the small carnivore off her eyes. But treats were the reward, there was no way Yoshiko would let go that easily.

Ruby took the opportunity to turn back and shoot a second tranquilizing dart at Leah. After all, she was a hybrid, she was engineered to be stronger than the average dinosaur. With greater creatures come greater solutions.  
The dart landed in her chest. As she kept the chase, her body started getting heavier, heavier and heavier. She ended up falling on the hard floor. Still fully conscious, but her body had turned into stone.  
Ruby got down from the ramp and walked up to the weak dinosaur. The microraptor bounced back to her human coworker to dig her whole face into the treats pockets, minding her own business as Ruby was now attempting the riskiest part of the tame.  
She grabbed a second genome dart from her belt and sharply injected the product in the indoraptor's neck. The indoraptor shrieked, still convinced those darts were going to kill her. As she was snapping her jaw in Ruby's direction, the trainer, without questions, went for a hug with the deadly hybrid.  
"There, there, you're not the weapon you think you are..."  
As Ruby stroked the dinosaur's quills on her head, Leah looked like a whole new dinosaur. She wasn't moving anymore.  
The now expert trainer scratched under the raptor's chin, making sure she knew she wasn't afraid of her.

Leah had every oportunity to hurt, maul, kill, or play a bad trick on Ruby. She had every chance, right now, to play unconscious only to chop her arm off. She had an array of terrible things she could do to the small human who seemed like she was purposely making herself vulnerable. She thought about every single one of those awful injuries she could deal on Ruby. But in the end, she chose not to. Even the dinosaur herself didn't understand where her signature killer instincts went... Why did she suddenly become so fond of that meaningless prey ? Leah closed her eyes and rubbed her face against Ruby's. How could she hurt such a cute little creature anyway ? She even landed a delicate lick on the trainer's cheek. Disgusting, she thought, as she hissed at herself. She didn't understand what she had suddenly become.

To make sure that the indoraptor was now hers, Ruby pulled her sleeves and showed her bare arm to Leah. The indoraptor didn't even attempt to brutally bite into it, to the dinosaur's very own surprise. Ruby, to this reveal, tacklehugged the hybrid some more. Leah pushed her away with the back of her hand, making sure her sharp claws weren't anywhere near the trainer. Eugh, humans... So disgustingly endearing.

"There's still things I need you to do, Leah." the indoraptor, relieved that she wouldnt just serve the purpose of the scaly teddy bear from now on, was awaiting for orders. It was surprising how intelligent she was. As if... she had small hints of human dna herself...  
"Let's show Mari and Kanan what you can do now." Ruby gave a treat to the indoraptor to help her recover from the tranquilizer darts. Soon enough, Leah was back on her feet, ready to rumble.

The trainer and her two raptors walked out of the hotel entrance. Mari had now revealed herself, and was fighting Dia two on one with Kanan. You was lying down, unconscious.  
Ruby grabbed her whistle to get the scientist and her raptor's attention. Mari's face looked like horror in its purest form when she saw the trained Indoraptor walking out of the hotel like it was nothing.  
Pointing at the scientist's partner, Ruby gave a pat on Leah's shoulder.

"Charge."


End file.
